LEXINGTON, Ky. — Snow has blanketed Kentucky in a land of white and while it is beautiful for some; it can be deadly for others, especially for those without a home or shelter.

What You Need To Know

  • The Catholic Action Center is trying to get those on the streets into temporary shelter this week 

  • Thomas Caudill drives the "Compassionate Care" van delivering food, warming supplies to homeless individuals in Lexington  

  • Over 60 unhoused people in camps have been given shelter at a local motel 

  • The Catholic Action Center pays for 10 days worth of rooms 

With several inches of snow on the ground and a bit of ice; the Catholic Action Center has been hard at work the past week; finding those without a home temporary shelter and bringing them food and supplies to stay warm in the bitter cold.

While others might have been at home staying warm, Brother Thomas Caudill spent Monday afternoon loading up sandwiches, chips and other food items to give to Lexington’s homeless community.

“Today we’re feeding Christ. He was homeless, amen,” Caudill said.

Caudill drives the Catholic Action Center’s “Compassionate Care” van. He has been working at the nonprofit since 2002.

“So we’ve been going out at night, whenever they give us a call and picking up people and bringing them to a motel room,” Caudill said.

The van filled to the brim, as Caudill brings hundreds of sandwiches, donated by volunteers, to members in the homeless community. On Monday, he delivered 400 sandwiches, 200 to the Day Life Center in downtown Lexington alone.

“It’s a blessing too to know you’re able [to help] because all this stuff we get is donations so when we let them know we need stuff, the city comes together,” Caudill said.

It’s an everyday process, especially in the winter. Thomas said being without is a story he knows all too well and keeps him going on the mission of giving back.

“This helps me stay straight because that’s where I came from. It’s what God saved me from so I don’t judge them. I know what it is to go through single-parent, I know what it is [to] go through an alcohol problem, cocaine,” Caudill said.

Caudill said not all suffer from alcohol or drug issues, but said all relate to being poor and not being able to have permanent shelter. The final destination of Monday’s sandwiches, a motel, where the Catholic Action Center is paying for rooms to keep people experiencing homelessness out of the cold.

Pickups started Saturday, taking people to warmth. Ginny Ramsey, co-founder of the Catholic Action Center, said their primary concern was people in deep camps avoiding being cited for street camping.

“At this point, we do have 63 people who we’ve been able to get out of the deep camps and those who have no other place they could go,” Ramsey said.

Ramsey said shelter space at the Catholic Action Center is full as are most other shelters. She says this is an alternative way to protect people from a dire circumstance.

“[These are people] who otherwise would be, as someone said, turned into popsicles if they were left out in the cold,” Ramsey said.

Volunteers like Caudill have been working non-stop, but he said seeing the reaction when dropping off food is worth it.

“It’s just rewarding to see somebody and then they appreciate it. I can’t even explain it," Caudill said.

Caudill also asks drivers to be extra cautious with the snow as many people might walk in the streets as the sidewalks remain covered as plows work to get snow off the streets and push the snow to the side.

The Catholic Action Center is always looking for donations of food, money and warming supplies, especially as temps will be below freezing for the next week.

To find out more about donating or volunteering, visit the Catholic Action Center’s website.

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